One crash victim disappointed by lack of consequences

Thursday

Apr 26, 2012 at 10:02 PM

Bernie DeWit whipped through the FDLE report in 25 minutes hoping to read something that did more than confirm what he already suspected.

By Anne GeggisStaff writer

Bernie DeWit whipped through the 38 pages of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement report on the Jan. 29 crashes in 25 minutes Thursday hoping to read something that did more than confirm what he already suspected.Three months ago, the Grand Rapids, Mich., resident was driving on Interstate 75 in the early hours of that January morning when the truck in front him disappeared.He said he knew then that the road he was driving on should not have been open to travelers.But reading through Thursday's report, DeWit said what struck him the most was what was not in it."There's no consequences for not doing things properly," said DeWit, 58, who suffered a broken back in the accident. "Somewhere (in the report), the state of Florida should be saying, ‘You didn't do your job.' "Simply identifying what went wrong, as the report does, diminished the seriousness of what happened as a result of the mistakes, he said."Eleven people died — you have to do something," he said. "This is taking it so lightly it's ridiculous."DeWit's wife of 39 years, Margie DeWit, 56, was in the passenger seat the night of the accident.He last heard her voice minutes before a truck plowed into the back of their car, which he had pulled over on the side of the interstate. She has been in a coma ever since."Chances are better than not that my wife won't ever be the same person she was before this," he said.Not everyone felt the same as DeWit.Steven Camps Sr., whose son Steven Camps II, 23, of Gainesville also suffered injuries in the accident — although not life-threatening — said he found the report's candor refreshing."At least they were honest," he said. "They made a huge mistake, and it took so many lives. I don't think that someone should lose their job or get reprimanded."Christopher Chestnut, an attorney representing Steven Camps II, said his independent investigation points to several responsible parties. Like Camps, a half-dozen of the victims said they have lawyers."There are so many dynamics to this tragedy, you can't point the finger at any one driver, agency or company," Chestnut said. "Multiple parties should be held accountable for this, so they can learn from this and hopefully implement policies and procedures to prevent this from happening in the future."